Integrating Sustainability Concerns into Agile Software Development Process
Shola Oyedeji, Ruzanna Chitchyan, Mikhail Ola Adisa, Hatef Shamshiri
TL;DR
The paper investigates whether sustainability considerations are integrated into software engineering practice. It combines a brief practitioner survey with an in-depth industry case study (Labor Hire) to demonstrate how sustainability can be embedded into agile software development using the SusAF framework, resulting in the SART toolbox and backlog adaptations. Key contributions include empirical evidence of limited current adoption, a practical integration approach for Scrum, and a roadmap for scaling sustainability in 2030 through Agile Manifesto engagement, standardization, and education. The work provides a replicable path for teams to account for sustainability in daily agile work and informs industry-wide strategies for broader adoption.
Abstract
Software has the potential to be a key driver in fostering sustainability. Despite this potential, it is not clear if and how the software industry integrates consideration of sustainability into its common software development processes. This research starts by investigating the current state of sustainability consideration within the software engineering industry through a survey. The results highlight a lack of progress in practically integrating sustainability considerations into software development activities. To address this gap, a case study with an industry partner is conducted to demonstrate how sustainability concerns and effects can be integrated into agile software development. The findings of this case study demonstrate practical approaches to integrating sustainability into software development practices. Reflecting on the findings from the survey and the case study, we note some insights on scaling up the adoption of sustainability consideration into the daily practice of agile software development.